Bob the runner

First in my Age Group! A few weeks ago, I completed my second Sprint Triathlon of the year.  This Triathlon permitted participants to do swim bike run in any order.   There was also an option to only do two disciplines in any order.   I chose the traditional swim-bike-run but was competing against others doing all 3 disciplines in their chosen order. I'm not sure how the race directors keep everything organized but Racing Underground did a great job. Registration, packet pickup, and every aspect of the event went great for me.   The Triathlon was held at Aurora Reservoir in Aurora Colorado. I really enjoy swimming in the reservoir but knew the course would be tough. The bike ride and run are especially tough with plenty of rolling hills. I arrived at the reservoir around 610am. Parking was easy with a short walk to transition. There were lots of people already set up in transition so I was pleased to find an available spot close to the bike exit. It was also close to a

  Just like last year, I really enjoyed TriBoulder.  The event is really well organized and Boulder Reservior is a fun place to hang out and do a Triathlon.  There were 3 other people from the Arvada Tri Club there as well as my friend Jeff Nielsen.  My finish time (1:47:24) wasn't fast but overall I am satisfied since I really didn't have much time to train for the event due to the broken foot. My friend Jeff and I arrived at Boulder Reservior around 615am, 1 hour and 30 minutes before my wave started.  That gave us plenty of time to relax and do everything we needed before the race.  As I  walked towards transition they stopped me for body marking.   The wonders of someone writing numbers on you with magic marker.  Is it just me or does that stuff take a day to two to wear off?  Anyway once the marking was complete, I found my transition spot.  It actually wasn't too bad. Fairly close to the bike start/stop but not to the swim/run start/stop.  We were grouped togeth

Ready or not, my first 2015 Triathlon is coming on fast.  I'm excited for the event but nervous too.  I don't expect to win anything but want to do well.  I've been training hard so just need to focus this week on getting ready.  Here's a recap of my training for the week: Running:  Completed 4 runs total.  Three of the runs were 5K in distance the other was 1 mile and part of a brick.  My pace has improved and all but one of my runs were about 9:45 pace.  My lower back felt better and I was able to push a little harder.  The foot is still doing OK.  The breathing is still not easy and hopefully will improve as I push harder.  This week I plan to run 5K on Monday with the Arvada Tri Club at Roadrunner Sports.  On Wednesday I plan to do a speed 5K run and see if I can get below 9:30 pace.  I may do a 2 mile easy run on Friday but not sure since I also need to taper for the triathlon on Sunday. Biking:  2 rides completed.  16 mile training ride went well.  Averaged 57

I'm such a sucker.  One of my friends is doing the TriBoulder Sprint Triathlon on 26 July at the Boulder Reservoir.  He asked me to join him and I said "yes".  Uh oh, now I only have 2 weeks to get into some sort of triathlon shape.  What was I thinking?  We are talking 750M swim, 17.3 mile bike and 5K Run.  Sounds easy and I have no doubt about finishing but I also don't really want to embarrass myself by being last.  This will really change my goals over the next two weeks but I'm signed up so better get ready! I guess the first thing to do now is set my expectations.  My mind says I am ready to do my best Triathlon ever.  My current level of physical fitness is laughing and says "You better rethink that"!  I need to use this race as a training race for "My Way or the Tri Way".  This will be my first race of 2015 and will be a good gauge of where I am and what is possible for my Tri next month. This past week I was actually impressed with

Hooray,  I ran two miles last Tuesday! I know.  It seems comical.  Bob the Runner bragging about a two mile run.  What's up with that? I can also tell you it was the toughest two mile run in my memory and  I averaged 10.49 per mile.  It was a nice casual run but I wasn't dogging it.  I was disappointed in my slowness but also at the same time happy that I could run the distance.  The run started off easy enough but started to get really hard after about a mile.  My hip started tightening up, breathing was tough and it really wasn't fun...  :-( Wait...I like running.  Where did the fun go?   Unfortunately I think the lack of taking care of my body during my foot injury is reaping some results and not in a good way.  British beer, fish and chips, British pie, potato chips, cheese, bacon, and you get the picture!  Eating and drinking was fun but the extra 20 pounds makes running much tougher.  The good news is the foot did fine.  It doesn't feel as good as before the

On Friday, May 29,  after 4 more weeks (6 total) in the boot the Dr said I could take it off.  The X-ray seemed to show enough healing to warrant his decision.  He said no running for another 3 weeks but biking and swimming are permissible.  In my mind I jumped for joy!  It would have hurt if I really jumped.  I didn't bring a shoe with me to the Dr appointment so had to wear the boot home. My first destination after removing the boot was Roadrunner sports (my favorite running store).  I wanted to get a pair of comfortable cushy running shoes for everyday wear.  I know..."Dr says no running" and I won't.  I ended up choosing a pair of Hoka One One Clifton's.  The shoes felt very comfortable from the time I put them on.  They fit well and were easy to walk in.  It was kinda like walking on pillows under my forefoot and mid-foot.  The only concern with the shoes was the heel drop-off.  The shoes are rounded up at the heel to support heel strikers.  It was a little

My wife claims I became obsessed with running.  She thought it became too important in my life.  She claimed I was imbalanced.  I sure did enjoy running and thought about it often. Ask my wife, I even talked about it often!  Planning my next race and destination and how to train for it was definitely high on the priority list.  Was it an addiction?  Was I out of balance? I can't answer the question but I do know when I wasn't running my thoughts weren't far off from running.  Strava, Garmin connect, and how to improve became some of my best friends.  When I couldn't run I became cranky. When I was running 4-6 days per week, I could eat what I wanted and not gain weight.  I looked really good and my jeans fit great.  My blood pressure, cholesterol, and other medical results were always great. It all happened so quickly and has hit me like a ton of bricks.  Friday the 13th.  A normal day?  Perhaps not!  Thinking back, I can blame it on several things.  Was it runnin